Death penalty sought in Pa. mobile home slaying

UNIONTOWN, Pa. — A western Pennsylvania prosecutor says he will seek the death penalty against a man charged in the stabbing death of a woman who had cared for his ill mother at a mobile home park.

Fifty-six-year-old Henry Crawford is charged with homicide and burglary in the Jan. 28 slaying of 49-year-old Lisa Tupta at Holiday Mobile Home Park in Fayette County’s North Union Township.

The (Uniontown) Herald-Standard (http://bit.ly/X21YS9 ) says District Attorney Jack Heneks Jr. cited a protection from abuse order the victim had obtained after two earlier encounters. He also cited the defendant’s criminal history Thursday and alleged that the victim had been tortured.

Public defender Jeffrey Whiteko asked for specifics on the aggravating circumstances cited to justify the death penalty, saying a mere allegation of torture was insufficient.